Anyone working at WRAMC?

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Hey,
I'm an ANCP graduate nurse. I'm currently waiting to take the NCLEX and pass my commissioning physical, but I've been assigned to Washington, DC for my first duty station. Anyone have any suggestions or live in DC? I'm looking for an apartment where I can keep a car at a reasonable price. I'd like to live in the city so that I'm near WRAMC, but I'm not sure how realistic that is based on the cost of living in DC. A lot of people have told me that it's a lot cheaper to rent a car for the weekend or take the taxi, but I tend to be a traveler and want to bring my car with me. Any other advice would be appreciated! Thanks!

Hey,
I'm an ANCP graduate nurse. I'm currently waiting to take the NCLEX and pass my commissioning physical, but I've been assigned to Washington, DC for my first duty station. Anyone have any suggestions or live in DC? I'm looking for an apartment where I can keep a car at a reasonable price. I'd like to live in the city so that I'm near WRAMC, but I'm not sure how realistic that is based on the cost of living in DC. A lot of people have told me that it's a lot cheaper to rent a car for the weekend or take the taxi, but I tend to be a traveler and want to bring my car with me. Any other advice would be appreciated! Thanks!

WRAMC is closing in the next year and merging with NNMC in Bethesda about 10 miles away. I lived in Kensington and Rockville when I worked at NNMC. There are a few apartments near NNMC, but they tend to be expensive.

Some of the staff are going to Ft. Belvoir and some of the staff are going to NNMC when WRAMC closes late 2011. You will not know where you will be going yet, which is frustrating when it comes to finding a place to move. Silver Spring is a decent choice for WRAMC's current location. If you are willing to travel a little more for work I would suggest VA, the cities are much nicer IMO. Arlington and Alexandria are really nice, and would be pretty close if you get sent to Ft. Belvoir. I live in Silver Spring now and am jealous of all my friends' wonderful neighborhoods in VA. If you are new to the area you will have to decide if you want to live more "in the city" (small apartment) near a metro or more "in the burbs" (maybe a townhome).

Thanks for all the info...I had no idea WRAMC was consolidating with NNMC or that some of the staff will go to Belvoir. It looks like VA definitely has the better housing options. Could someone give me a ballpark figure on how much the Army pays for the housing allowance?

The further you get from the DC area the better the traffic gets, but traffic in that area is considered the second or third worst in the country. A lot of people I worked with at NNMC lived in Rockville, Gaithersburg, or Germantown. We were able to find a house about 3 miles away in Kensington off of Beach Drive it made for a fairly easy commute. There are a few apartments and condos/townhouses around Beach Drive in that area, but you are really going to want to go look at them first. The area in Kensington and Silver Springs is very diverse with some really nice sections and some sections you don't want to live in at all.

I just talked to a friend of mine at NNMC, and he told me WRAMC is scheduled to closed in August 2011.

Thanks for all the info...I had no idea WRAMC was consolidating with NNMC or that some of the staff will go to Belvoir. It looks like VA definitely has the better housing options. Could someone give me a ballpark figure on how much the Army pays for the housing allowance?

Yes the drive can be very bad from VA. But if you are a nurse at WRAMC on day shift, you can only get parking if you arrive NLT 0600, and there is very little traffic during that window. I can make it from my friend's house in Falls Church to WRAMC in 20 minutes for a day shift. And if you work a 12 hour shift, you will leave after the biggest rush of traffic. IMO it's worth the higher quality of neighborhoods/housing in VA to make this trip vs. living closer in MD. Housing allowance depends on your rank and family situation. A single new 2LT BAH will be something like $1680 with it going up to around $1980 when you get 1LT. You also get 200+ bucks for BAS. I know the numbers are higher if you are married with children. It is a good amount of money and it is tax free.

Yes the drive can be very bad from VA. But if you are a nurse at WRAMC on day shift, you can only get parking if you arrive NLT 0600, and there is very little traffic during that window. I can make it from my friend's house in Falls Church to WRAMC in 20 minutes for a day shift. And if you work a 12 hour shift, you will leave after the biggest rush of traffic. IMO it's worth the higher quality of neighborhoods/housing in VA to make this trip vs. living closer in MD. Housing allowance depends on your rank and family situation. A single new 2LT BAH will be something like $1680 with it going up to around $1980 when you get 1LT. You also get 200+ bucks for BAS. I know the numbers are higher if you are married with children. It is a good amount of money and it is tax free.

Yes but how is the drive going to be once WRAMC is closed and you are working at a different base.